Throughout this application, the term “brand” is used to mean any organization that provides goods or services. For example, a brand in this context can be any type of company, association, person, group, or organization. Moreover, the terms company, association, person, group, and organization are used interchangeably and the use of one should be understood to encompass the others.
The specifications set out by The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (‘3GPP specifications’) define the operation of mobile voice and data services within a telecommunications network. The term “3GPP specification” covers all GSM (including GPRS and EDGE), W-CDMA and LTE (including LTE-Advanced) specifications. All 3GPP specifications from the years 2000 through 2011 are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.
Throughout this application, standard telecom industry terms are used. The International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) is the unique number identifying the subscriber and is preprogrammed onto the subscriber's SIM card and held also in the Mobile Network Operator's Home Location Register (HLR) database. The Mobile Subscriber Integrated Services Directory Number (MSISDN) is the mobile telephone number given to a particular user.
The General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) is a technology used in mobile networks to carry Internet Protocol (IP) packets across networks.
The roles of the Serving GPRS Support Node (SGSN) and Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN) are well defined in the 3GPP specifications and are familiar to persons skilled in the art.
Throughout this application, the terms ‘mobile station’ and ‘mobile device’ are used. These can refer to any type of GSM device capable of sending or receiving data over a ‘GPRS’, ‘3G’, WIMAX or ‘LTE’ network or their equivalents or evolutions. Furthermore, a ‘mobile device’ can also refer to the device compliant with the emerging Machine 2 Machine (‘M2M’) specifications being developed by ETSI (the European Telecommunications Standards Institute).
Throughout this application, the terms “API Server” and “MXGateway” are used. The API Server (Application Programming Interface Server) is a designation given to an element of the system that is responsible for interacting with the brands. The MXGateway is a designation given to a specific instance of an element of the system that is responsible for interacting with the mobile network operator's core network elements and also with the mobile application. The API Server and MXGateway can be implemented using computer software and/or hardware.
In many countries in the developed world, mobile phone penetration has far exceeded the 100% level, meaning that the mobile phone is now an essential tool in many peoples' daily lives. The emergence of smart mobile devices with associated mobile application ecosystems and application stores, for example those provided by the companies Apple and Google, is in widespread use across many mobile devices. These ecosystems open up new business opportunities for many companies.
As a result of this, many organizations have realized great potential in mobile devices and are experimenting with new levels of customer engagement using mobile technology. Indeed, some brands have decided to take the step of setting themselves up as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) so that they are able to sell mobile devices with associated mobile numbers and Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards. By setting themselves up as an MVNO, the brand can engage better with its customers, allowing the customer to feel connected to the brand by having a mobile number and, in some cases also a mobile device, provided by the brand itself. In addition, the brand can offer mobile services thereby providing an additional source of revenue.
However, MVNOs are time consuming and expensive to setup. They require the brand to conform to certain telecom regulations and require the brand to have a detailed knowledge of mobile technology and services that in many cases they will not have in-house. MVNOs also compete with mobile operators to attract subscribers away from the traditional networks, often requiring the end user to sign a new mobile contract and often to purchase a new device in the process.
There is therefore a need for a system that can lower the ‘barrier of entry’ for brands enabling them to engage with their customers with specific mobile identities on existing mobile network infrastructure and using existing mobile devices.